On a homecoming of sorts for D.J. Cooper (Chicago, IL), the sophomore guard scored 29 points while also tallying 8 assists in helping to lead the Bobcats to a 67-65 victory on the road at Illinois State in Normal, Ill. Despite being out rebounded 44-31 and not leading by any more than three points, the Bobcats managed to gain the victory.

After an Illinois State trey by Alex Rubin, the Redbirds led 7-0 four minutes into the contest. Cooper would fight back and cut the lead minutes later, but the Rubin hit another three and the Redbirds still led 14-6 after eight minutes of play. However Ohio responded with a 12-6 run highlighted by two treys by Cooper and one by Nick Kellogg that sliced the lead to one, 22-21 ISU. A back and forth battle to end the half would would leave the score at 29-27 Redbirds. The Redbirds hadn’t lost a game after leading at half since March of 2009.

The second half would start with Illinois State jumping out twice to three point leads but both times the Bobcats would answer with treys from T.J. Hall and Kellogg respectively. At the 14:16 mark of the second half the Bobcats finally broke through and took their first lead of the night after a Devaughn Washington fastbreak slam gave Ohio a 39-37 lead. A few minutes later though, after a John Wilkins three, the Redbirds tied it back up at 45-45 with eleven minutes to go.

Ohio's D.J. Cooper led all scorers with 29 points and 8 assists.

However, a late run by the Redbirds would give them a five point lead, 55-50 with six minutes to play in the ballgame. But once again D.J. Cooper would turn it on and score the next five straight points to tie the game at 55-55. He also accounted for the next four Bobcat points that made the score Illinois State 62-59 with three and a half minutes to go. Two free throws from ISU’s Tony Lewis would tie the game at 65. But with 30 seconds to go in the ballgame D.J. Cooper drove to the lane and laid the ball of the backboard in to give the ‘Cats the 67-65 lead.

The Redbirds would fall short on two missed threes by Justin Clark and Alex Rubin as time expired to give the Bobcats the 67-65 victory.

Nick Kellogg tallied 19 points for the Bobcats. Leading the Redbirds in scoring were Jackie Carmichael with 16 and Tony Lewis with 15. The Bobcats shot about 40% and the ‘Birds shot about 42%.

With the win the ‘Cats move to 5-3 and the Redbirds move to 6-3. The Bobcats will play host to IUPUI (4-5) on Sunday at 2 PM. IUPUI will play at #2 Ohio State on Thursday night before heading to Athens to take on the Bobcats.

In front of a crowd of nearly 6,000 at the Convocation Center in Athens, OH, the Ohio Bobcats and the Marshall Thundering Herd played a heated rivalry game in which there was a total of 39 turnovers, 25 of those coming in the first half.

The Bobcats jumped ahead quickly off a few Marshall turnovers with a basket from Ivo Baltic and then a corner three from D.J. Cooper that helped make the score 8-2. But the Bobcats would have turnovers of their own helping the Herd jump into the lead with an 8-0 that made it 10-8. Five Bobcat turnovers later and the score was 18-13 Herd after a three by Dago Pena with 8 minutes to go. A defensive battle for the last 8 minutes would leave the score at 27-23 Marshall at halftime.

At the half, Marshall was shooting 36% and the ‘Cats were shooting 33%.

Marshall's DeAndre Kane scored 18 points to help lead Marshall to the victory.

A few baskets by DeAndre Kane and Pena would help the Herd take a 10 point lead 5 minutes into the half, 37-27. The Bobcats would fight back and go on a 16-6 run to tie the game at 43 with 10 minutes to go that included baskets from Ivo Baltic and Devaughn Washington and a trey from Nick Kellogg.

The last 10 minutes would become in essence a pure battle between Ohio’s D.J. Cooper and Marshall’s DeAndre Kane. The two went back and forth scoring 8 points each in the time span. In the end Kane and the Herd were just too much for the Bobcats. With the score tied at 55 with 3 minutes to go the Herd went on a 12-2 run to seal the victory.

“Yes, it was a sloppy first half, which certainly affected the scoring a little bit.” said Ohio Head Coach John Groce after the game. “I thought we got off to a great start and had good energy; that hasn’t been a problem for us. Our problem right now isn’t effort. I think our guys play pretty hard. We can always play harder and compete better at times but our deal right now is much more execution than it is effort. We give good effort. I like the attitude of our team. I think our guys like one another and it’s just a matter of time before we link up and start playing well together.”

The Bobcats shot 33% for the game and the Herd, now 5-2, shot 44%. The leading scorer for the Bobcats was D.J. Cooper with 22 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists. Ivo Baltic and Devaughn Washington also chipped in with 10 points. Leading scorer for the Herd was DeAndre Kane with 18 points.

After the defeat, the Bobcats fall to 4-3 and will travel to Normal, Ill. to play Illinois State on Wednesday at 8 p.m. For live stats or live audio visit www.ohiobobcats.com. Look for a preview of the game coming up on monday or tuesday! Also, look for a Ohio Football Preview as they are selected to a bowl game tomorrow!

As a side note, a tip of the cap to Ryan Theis and his Ohio Women’s Volleyball team on their success. The Bobcat Volleyball squad won the MAC title and advanced to the NCAA Tournament where they beat Penn in the first round 3-0 and fell to #13 Duke 3-2 in the second round. Congrats!

With the Ohio Bobcats (4-2) set to host the Thundering Herd of Marshall (4-2) on Saturday at 2 PM, here are some notes and comments before the matchup and a small preview of the matchup:

-The Herd are coming off an 88-79 win over Florida International on Monday in Huntington. Redshirt freshman guard DeAndre Kane scored 25 points for the second consecutive game. Kane connected on 8-o-f-14 field goals while his 8-12 showing from the charity stripe helped the Herd (4-2) to a 69.8% effort from the free throw line, its top effort of the season.

-The Bobcats have had the week off after traveling to Las Vegas for the second half of IBN Las Vegas Invitational in which the ‘Cats went 3-1. Wins included Texas A&M Corpus-Christi, Valparaiso (both at home), and Santa Clara. The lone loss came to #6 Kansas on Friday, a night in which the Cats didn’t make a three for the first time since ’97. The Bobcats are 4-2 overall.

-The Bobcats are led in scoring by MAC Preseason Player of the year, sophomore D.J. Cooper, who is averaging about 17.8 points a game and about 5 rebounds. Cooper was recently named MAC East Player of the Week. Kane is the scoring leader for the Herd averaging about 17.5 points along with 5 rebounds per game. Such similar stats will make for an interesting matchup between the two guards.

-Ohio guard Nick Kellogg has done well stepping in and playing a nice chunk of minutes as a true freshman (he averages 23.0 minutes a game). If you recognize the name, its for good reason. Nick is the son of former OSU great and TV analyst Clark Kellogg. Nick has shot the ball well from three, shooting 36%, and averages about 8 points a game.

Ohio's Devaughn Washington has come back into form averaging about 10 points a game.

-After the one regular season game suspension given to Ohio’s senior forward/center Devaughn Washington, he has started to regain his presence averaging about 10 points and 5 rebounds a game for the ‘Cats.

-Last year the Herd defeated the Bobcats 60-53 as a part of the Global Sports Invitational.

Probable Starters:

Marshall: G 6-4 DeAndre Kane (17.5 pts.), G 6-3 Shaquille Johnson (11.8 pts.), F 6-6 Tirrell Baines (13 pts.), F 6-6 Dago Pena (11.8 pts.), C 6-10 Nigel Spikes (5 pts.).

Ohio: G 5-11 D.J. Cooper (17.8 pts.), G 6-3 Nick Kellogg (7.7 pts.), F 6-5 Tommy Freeman (9.4 pts.), F 6-6 Asown Sayles (4 pts.), C 6-8 Reggie Keely (7.8 pts.).

Ohio Bobcats Keys to the game:

1. Cooper needs to win the battle of the guards. Defense will be key on a guard like Kane, who has seemingly scored at ease in his last two games. Pressure him and force other guys on the court make shots for the Herd.

2. The ‘Cats need to make the three ball. Tommy Freeman, ranked the 4th best shooter in the nation by Jeff Goodman of Fox Sports (http://msn.foxsports.com/collegebasketball/story/College-baseketball-preview-top-shooters-for-2010-11-season-112010), will be a key along with Cooper and Kellogg in the ‘Cats production of the three. In 3 or the 4 wins the ‘Cats have shot above 38% from beyond the arc but in the 2 losses this season Ohio averages 17 percent beyond the arc.

3. Get ahead early. The Bobcats have struggled to build leads going into the half. In the majority of their games the score is within 3 to 4 points at the half. Get a lead early and carry the momentum through the second half.

To catch live stats or listen to the game live on WOUB AM 1340, go to ohiobobcats.com.

One night after having one of the worst shooting nights in recent Ohio Basketball history in a 57-point loss to Kansas, the Bobcats got up off the mat and won a hard fought ballgame over the Santa Clara Broncos, 78-72, in the IBN Las Vegas Invitational.

In the first ever meeting between the two schools the Broncos led 19-10 with 10 minutes to go in the first half after a Marc Trasolini three. Although 9-2 and 8-2 runs for the Bobcats that included a couple threes from D.J. Cooper and Nick Kellogg along with a basket from Ivo Baltic would help Ohio cut the Santa Clara lead to two at the half, 34-32.

The second half was one in which both teams traded shots. Cooper and Trasolini traded threes to start the half. Then after a Trasolini slam, the Bobcats went on a 13-2 run over a four-minute stretch before Santa Clara called timeout with Ohio leading, 48-44. The Broncos then went on a 7-0 run before T.J. Hall responded with a three to tie it up 51-51 with 12 minutes to go.

After a two baskets by Troy Payne and Trasolini the Broncos led 70-66 and the Bobcats called a timeout. From then on it would be all Ohio as they turned it on and closed strong on a 12-2 run to finish the game that included a three from Nick Kellogg and a few clutch free throws from D.J. Cooper.

Ohio Freshman Nick Kellogg had a career high 14 points

The Bobcats shot 34% from the three point line, one night after they didn’t make a three for the first time since ’97. They also improved by 20% on field goals.

Ohio was led in scoring by sophomore guard D.J. Cooper with 29, and freshmen T.J. Hall, 15, and Nick Kellogg, 14 (both career highs for the freshmen). Santa Clara was led by  Trasolini with 19 and Kevin Foster with 10.

The win ends the Invitational for the Bobcats (4-2 Overall), who went 3-1 over its course, and the Broncos (4-3 Overall), who went 2-2.

Next up the Ohio Bobcats will host the Marshall Thundering Herd (3-2) on Saturday at 2 PM. Look for a preview for the game early this week.

Last year, Ohio University Basketball (now 3-2) pulled off the stunning upset in the first round of the NCAA Tournament by beating the Georgetown Hoyas (a #4 seed, the ‘Cats were a #13) soundly. That momentum didn’t carry over tonight as they fell hard to the #6 ranked Kansas Jayhawks. The matchup was part of a 4 game home and travel tournament, the Las Vegas Invitational. The game was held on a neutral floor in Las Vegas.

The Jayhawk defense was stellar all night holding the Bobcats to just 23.7% well on the other side of the ball, it seemed as though Kansas could not miss shooting 56.5% for the game and 72% for the second half. Ohio was 0 for 18 from beyond the arc, its worst performance from distance since it went 0 for 19 in a contest at St. Bonaventure on December 5, 1997. The Jayhawks were lead in scoring by Junior Forward Marcus Morris who scored 26 points while snatching 8 rebounds.

It was truly a game of runs as early in the first quarter the Jayhawks jumped out on a 10 point run that just kick started the scoring woes for the ‘Cats. Kansas never trailed in the game and after the 2-2 tie early in the game it never got close. Kansas had their biggest lead of the first half with four minutes to go in the first half 43-16. To add to the Jayhawk lead, Kansas went on a 17-2 run to start the second half and later, with 7 minutes to go in the game, scored 19 points unanswered.

Guard D.J. Cooper (MAC Preseason player of the year) was the lone bright spot for Ohio with 16 points and 6 rebounds. The only other Bobcat player even close was freshman Nick Kellogg with 7 points. Also scoring for the Jayhawks were Travis Releford with 13 and Markieff Morris with 11 points and 8 rebounds.

The 57-point margin is the biggest regular season victory on a neutral court in KU history.

The ‘Cats had already started the tournament 2-0 with wins at home over Texas A&M Corpus-Christi (83-70) and Valparaiso (78-75) in Athens, OH. Kansas was also 2-0 in LV Tourney play with wins over TAMCC and Valpo in Lawrence, Kansas.

Tomorrow night, Ohio will play Santa Clara as their final game as a part of the Las Vegas Invitational. The game tips at 7 p.m. The Broncos (4-2) return all five starters and lost to Arizona, 82-59, friday night as a part of the LV Invitational.